During this week of Thanksgiving and Barbo’s recent medical situation, I’m reflecting on the many things I’m thankful for and that includes all of you. Today I am thankful for dogs, not just my own, but all of my clients, that I get to know so well over the months, and in some cases, years, that I am part of their journey. Most of my clients come to me because their dogs are fearful, aggressive or reactive but their humans still love them and come to me, because they want so desperately to help their dogs live a better life.
I have this sign in my home. It’s a reminder that as annoying it is to vacuum up dog fur, clean up muddy paw prints, have huge vet bills or get a bad night of sleep from sharing our bed, that I wouldn’t want it any other way. One day, there will be a huge void in our hearts and home. I thought we were about to come to that point with Barbo’s hospitalization and surgery recently. I’m thankful for my senior dogs, as heartbreaking as it is sometimes, it’s a blessing they’ve lived this long and that we still have two 13 year old dogs enjoying going through life with us.
Before Barbo’s surgery, we scheduled a mini photoshoot, just in case he didn’t survive. I’m so incredibly thankful to Jen Lynne Photography for getting us on her schedule so quickly. And even though his lump turned out to be a soft tissue sarcoma, as far as cancers go, this is a pretty good one to get. It’s localized, doesn’t often metastasize and our surgeon, Dr. Palmisano, got clear margins. So I’m thankful for his skillful hands, and that Barbo is cancer free. One of those very special pics is below. I love BooBoo checking out Barbo.
My clients that struggle with difficult issues love their dogs and while they might wish life with their fearful dog is hard, they still commit to living with and loving their dog. And they’re thankful for small wins. They understand fear isn’t easily modified and they celebrate the baby step wins along the way.
Photo by Jen Lynne Photography
So this Thanksgiving, I encourage you to be thankful, even for the things that annoy you. Barking, chewing, digging, peeing, shedding, rolling in stinky stuff, begging for your food, growling, chasing squirrels…all things that mean your dog is being a normal dog. If we can be thankful for dogs being dogs and doing normal dog things, instead of being annoyed they aren’t robots who perform on cue 100% of the time, I think everyone would be happier – you and your dog. Happy Thanksgiving!
As always, if you need help, you can schedule your session here!
Happy training!
